Crude oil approaches $97

Crude oil prices closed under $97 per barrel Tuesday, the high end of a trading range that has dominated the market for more than a month. With few exceptions, West Texas Intermediate crude oil has ranged from $91 to $97 per barrel since early August. October delivery crude oil traded up and down Tuesday, closing the day at $96.77 per barrel, down 40 cents from the day's peak but up 62 cents from a day earlier. Natural gas gained 1.3 cents to $3.005 per million British thermal units. Home heating oil lost 0.57 cents to $3.18 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline tacked on 0.36 cents to $3.0471 per gallon. At the pump, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.843 per gallon Tuesday, a sharp 1.5 cent gain from Monday's $3.828, AAA reported.